Date: Thu, 17 Jan 2002 21:31:09 -0500 From: Four Weis <mweinopsamcom> Subject: Re: '00 9-3 Fuel capacity
"P. G. Schroeder" wrote: > I usually fill up my '00 9-3 when the gauge hits the red > reserve and the computer says about 50 miles left. Today I > waited a little longer and the computer was reading 28 miles > to go. It took 17.2 gallons, but the manual says the tank > capacity is 17.0 gallons! Is the manual wrong, or the pump > fraudulant, or am I just lucky? Thanks for any comments or > advice. Lucky and a little bold, aren't we? I don't run my tank down that far for two reason. The first is water in the air in the tank could condense and the liquid water would sink below the gas level, collecting until it was sucked up by the fuel pump and sent to the engine. Engines run on gasoline, not water. The second reason is I drive a beltway, where you could be stuck in a backup. I have seen cars run out of gas, only to add to existing problems. The other drivers were not too kind to the hapless driver who ran out of gas. As for a technical answer - the gas tank capacity in based on the car being level and filled to a certain point. If the car is pointed downhill or uphill you might get more gas in the tank. If you keep filling until gas is near the top of the filler neck, you would end up pumping more gas. The gasoline pumps are supposed to be regulated by the Agriculture Department to ensure the volume is correct.